Nick Rakocevic helps USC hold off short-handed Long Beach State

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USC forward Nick Rakocevic shoots over Long Beach State’s Temidayo Yussuf, left, and Jordan Roberts during the second half of Wednesday’s game at the Galen Center. USC won 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Drew Cobb #3 of the Long Beach State 49ers drives to the basket past Elijah Weaver #3, left, and Derryck Thornton #5 of the USC Trojans, during the first half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

USC’s Nick Rakocevic #31 of the USC Trojans dunks over Temidayo Yussuf #24 of the Long Beach State 49ers during the first half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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Demetrius Mims #13 of the Long Beach State 49ers is called for a foul against Derryck Thornton #5 of the USC Trojans during the first half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Ron Freeman #1 of the Long Beach State 49ers blocks a shot by Shaqquan Aaron #0 of the USC Trojans during the first half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Jonah Mathews #2 of the USC Trojans is fouled as he scores past Mason Riggins #5 of the Long Beach State 49ers during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Shaqquan Aaron #0 of the USC Trojans is fouled by Ron Freeman #1 of the Long Beach State 49ers during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Bennie Boatwright #25, watches his three-pointer drop past KJ Byers #4 of the Long Beach State 49ers during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Bennie Boatwright #25, left, and Nick Rakocevic #31, both of the USC Trojans, stop Temidayo Yussuf #24 of the Long Beach State 49ers during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

USC Athletic Director Lynn Swann watches the men’s basketball game against Long Beach State at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Nick Rakocevic #31 of the USC Trojans dunks past Jordan Roberts #2 of the Long Beach State 49ers during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

USC’s Victor Uyaelunmo, right, blocks a shot by Long Beach State’s Edon Maxhuni as USC’s Jordan Usher helps defend during the first half of Wednesday’s game at the Galen Center. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

USC head coach Andy Enfield talks to his players during a timeout against Long Beach State during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Nick Rakocevic #31 of the USC Trojans is fouled by Drew Cobb #3 of the Long Beach State 49ers as Temidayo Yussuf #24 helps defend during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

USC head coach Andy Enfield talks to his players during a timeout against Long Beach State during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Shaqquan Aaron #0 of the USC Trojans dunks past Ron Freeman #1 of the Long Beach State 49ers during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Long Beach State head coach Dan Monson on the sidelines during their game against USC at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

USC forward Nick Rakocevic shoots over Long Beach State’s Temidayo Yussuf, left, and Jordan Roberts during the second half of Wednesday’s game at the Galen Center. USC won 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Demetrius Mims #13 of the Long Beach State 49ers defends Jordan Usher #1 of the USC Trojans during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Ron Freeman #1 of the Long Beach State 49ers dunks over Jordan Usher #1 of the USC Trojans during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Shaqquan Aaron #0 of the USC Trojans leaps over Jordan Roberts #2 of the Long Beach State 49ers during the first half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Nick Rakocevic #31 of the USC Trojans is fouled as he scores past KJ Byers #4 of the Long Beach State 49ers during the first half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Nick Rakocevic #31 of the USC Trojans defends Ron Freeman #1 of the Long Beach State 49ers as he shoots during the first half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

USC head coach Andy Enfield calls a play from the sidelines against Long Beach State during the second half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Nick Rakocevic #31 of the USC Trojans defends Temidayo Yussuf #24 of the Long Beach State 49ers during the first half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Jonah Mathews #2 of the USC Trojans reacts after scoring against the Long Beach State 49ers during the first half of their NCAA men’s basketball game at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Members of the USC Trojan Dance Force celebrate after the men’s basketball game against Long Beach State at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday, November 28, 2018. USC defeated Long Beach State 75-65. (Photo by Kevin Sullivan, Orange County Register/SCNG)

LOS ANGELES — When USC needed scoring late in its 75-65 victory over Long Beach State on Wednesday night, it leaned on Nick Rakocevic.

Rakocevic, the 6-foot-11 forward, provided several key baskets in the closing minutes for the Trojans as they preserved a narrow lead for a third consecutive win.

With the Trojans ahead by a score of 60-56 with five minutes left, Rakocevic scored a basket on three consecutive possessions, a stretch that began when he dove toward the basket, catching a pass en route from Bennie Boatwright as he flushed the finish.

“It was my teammates making all the right plays,” Rakocevic said. “All I was doing was cutting.”

A few minutes later, with the Trojans ahead only 68-65 entering the final minute, Rakocevic hit a hook shot from the low post to seal the win in front of 2,031 at Galen Center.

“He missed a lot of shots early,” USC coach Andy Enfield said. “I know he was frustrated. He probably could have had 25 or 26 points tonight.”

Rakocevic finished with a game-high 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, recovering from a tough start in which he missed nine of his first 12 shots. T junior scored 13 of his 19 points in the game’s final nine minutes for his fourth double-double in seven games this season. Boatwright and Derryck Thornton each added 13 points as all five USC starters scored in double figures. Johan Matthews had 11 and Shaqquan Aaron had 10.

“There are certain aspects we need to get better at,” Rakocevic said. “But overall, we got the win, and that’s all the matters.”

It was not a sharp shooting night for the Trojans (5-2) as they hit 42.2 percent, their second-lowest mark this season.

“We missed a lot of wide-open shots, from close in and from the 3-point line,” Enfield said.

They managed a bit better from beyond the arc, hitting 50 percent.

At times, the Trojans went through scoring droughts, such as a stretch of nearly four minutes midway through the second half in which they were held without a point, until Thornton scored a layup on a cut through the lane.

USC had been ahead 47-33 earlier in the second half but allowed Long Beach (2-6) to crawl back into the game during its drought.

“That’s maturity,” Enfield said. “When you have a lead on a team, you have to keep playing. You can’t relax or take some possessions off. They’ve been there, done that before, so they should know better. They need to understand that, and they do understand that.”

As the 49ers mounted their comeback, they took advantage on the glass, out-rebounding the Trojans, 48-43.

“Boxing out was really killing us,” Rakocevic said.

It led to 11 second-chance points for Long Beach, which collected 19 offensive rebounds.

Enfield called USC’s poor rebounding “the biggest concern” for the team, particularly as it prepares to host fifth-ranked Nevada on Saturday. The Trojans have relied on smaller lineups this season, and Enfield stressed that all five players on the floor needed to be better rebounders, not simply the front-court players.

“The guards have to do a better job of coming back in and getting the ball,” Enfield said. “Big guys have to rebound out of their area.”

The Trojans built a 36-28 lead at halftime after back-to-back 3-pointers by Shaqquan Aaron and Jonah Mathews in the final minute of the first half. Mathews added 11 points, while Aaron finished with 10 points.

The late 3-pointers helped restore most of what had been a nine-point lead that was nearly wiped away by an 8-1 Long Beach run, an earlier instance in which the Trojans couldn’t maintain the lead.

“The frustrating part is we’ll play great defense for 20 or 30 seconds, the team takes a tough shot,” Enfield said. “Then we don’t rebound the ball. We’re getting better defensively.”

Jordan Roberts and Bryan Alberts each scored 13 points, while Ron Freeman had 12 points and a career-high eight rebounds for short-handed Long Beach. The 49ers played without point guard Deishuan Booker, who is averaging a team-high 17.8 points and 4 assists per game. Booker was serving a one-game suspension for a team rules violation, an LBSU spokesperson said.

“He was terrific,” LBSU associate head coach Myke Scholl said of Freeman. “We’ve spent the last couple weeks talking to him about really getting aggressive at his spots.”

The 49ers, who dropped to 0-4 against Pac-12 teams this month, had a tougher time shooting than the Trojans, held to 35.7 percent from the field, but Scholl praised their defensive effort.

“I’m really proud of this team defensively,” Scholl said. “They hung together when we got down and really gritted it out.”

USC INJURY NOTES

Freshman guard Kevin Porter Jr. missed his second consecutive game due to a quad contusion, leaving his status for Saturday’s game against No. 5 Nevada up in the air.

Porter has been described as day-to-day since bruising his quad in a win over Missouri State last week in Kansas City, Mo.

Thornton, the starting point guard, returned to the lineup after he had been sidelined during Sunday’s win over Cal State Bakersfield.

UP NEXT

Long Beach State: Will play its seventh game away from home in its first nine games when the 49ers travel to the University of San Diego on Saturday.

USC: The Trojans face their first ranked team of the season when they play host to No. 5 Nevada on Saturday.

Joey Kaufman is the USC beat writer for the Southern California News Group. Since joining the Orange County Register in 2015, he has also covered Major League Baseball and UCLA athletics. His work has been recognized by the Associated Press Sports Editors and Football Writers Association of America. Kaufman grew up in beautiful downtown Burbank.